By Lida Prypchan
Born on March 30, 1853, in Groot-Zundert, Netherlands, Vincent Van Gogh lived the life of a tortured artist. Known for his use of color as symbolism as well as his rough painting style, Van Gogh’s influence on 20th –century art virtually mirrored the influence of the modern medical exploration of...

By Lida Prypchan
Vincent van Gogh’s moods often fluctuated with the seasons. He was often chronically ill during the colder, winter months, no matter where he lived. Suffering from an ongoing cough (probably from a prolific liking for tobacco), general malaise (probably from a limited diet that kept him near starvation...

By Lida Prypchan
The Vincent van Gogh of the mid 1880s would, for most, be completely unrecognizable as the artist of popular repute. To date, he embraced somber, dark colors and refused the commercially viable style of the era’s Impressionist artists. But, van Gogh believed in his work. His subjects gave him the...

By Lida Prypchan
Vincent van Gogh was born into a clan that were adept at two things – religion and art. Traditionally, the male members of the family were expected to enter the art world or follow a calling into religious ministry.
Vincent’s paternal grandfather, also named Vincent, obtained a degree of theology,...

By Lida Prypchan
Followed by controversy, Vincent van Gogh’s time in Paris with his brother in 1886, Theo, was preceded by a stay in Antwerp. After being accused of improper behavior with a village woman in Nuenen, van Gogh headed to Antwerp and made an effort to study art formally – specifically the study of color...

PP+A is a network of people from all walks of life who are interested in the relatedness between Psychiatry, Philosophy and the Arts.

We are interested in all aspects and points of views from mental health professionals, students, patients, and outside observers. We encourage the discussion of all philosophies including ancient or modern, new age, Eastern/Western, spirituality/religion and how they relate to overall artistic expression of the human condition through music, artworks, paintings, language/writing and creativity as a whole.

Our mission is:

to recognize and promote the interrelatedness of psychiatry, philosophy and the arts

to provide a safe space (with anonymity available) for discussions about the mind, psychiatric conditions, philosophy, and the impact of the arts on the mind and the spirit

to explore the link between psychiatric conditions and creativity, often described as the thin line between great works of art and madness.